The lander, with a rover on board, seemed to have completed its landing process up a point, but communication was lost and the lander's status is currently uncertain.

ISRO livestreamed the view from mission control. India had hoped to join an exclusive club of moon soft-landers, which includes the US, China and the former Soviet Union.

The Vikram lander made it through the rough braking phase that slowed the lander and helped to lower it toward the surface. It then went into a fine-braking phase, but updates from the lander came to a halt shortly after that. ISRO says it's analyzing the data up to that point.

India's prime minister and space fans took to Twitter to offer encouragement to the Chandrayaan-2 team and also mourn the probable loss of the lander.

"These are moments to be courageous, and courageous we will be," tweeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

India is proud of our scientists! They’ve given their best and have always made India proud. These are moments to be courageous, and courageous we will be!

Chairman @isro gave updates on Chandrayaan-2. We remain hopeful and will continue working hard on our space programme.

Wrote stand-up comedian Sridhar V, "Never thought I'd see the day when families across the nation would be tuned into their TVs watching a space mission at 2 a.m. in the night. You're already a winner ISRO. At the very least, tonight, you've inspired many a young mind. Well done."

Never thought I’d see the day when families across the nation would be tuned into their TVs watching a Space Mission at 2am in the night.

You’re already a winner ISRO. At the very least, tonight, you’ve inspired many a young minds. Well done 🙏🏻👏🏻#Chandrayaan2Live

This was to be the first mission to land near the moon's fascinating south pole. Water ice deposits have been seen in this region of the moon, and ISRO wanted to better understand their composition.

The Vikram lander was meant to operate for a single lunar day (around two Earth weeks), while the orbiter should continue to operate for a year in a circular orbit. Even if the lander failed, the orbiter will still carry forward the science torch for the Chandrayaan-2 mission.

Landing on the moon is fraught with risk, as Israel's Beresheet mission discovered when its spacecraft crashed during a soft-landing attempt earlier in 2019. The Beresheet team vowed to try again, but we'll have to wait for updates to know what has ultimately happened with India's efforts.

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